Great Western Main Line electrification - ongoing discussion

[whole diary]

[CMRail]

May I ask if the 2019 video was IET^▸ (Intercity Express Train - replacement for HSTs (manufactured by Hitachi in Kobe, Japan)) or HST^▸ (High Speed Train (Inter City class 43 125 units))?

Neither.     It was a Turbo, to match the 2010 one. 

That meant the acceleration and braking were very similar meaning I didn't have to do as much artificial slowing down or speeding up so that the clips match as closely as possible.  Even then, a signal check near Didcot means the 2010 video runs a little 'funny' from Moreton onwards to try and match everything up.  It was recorded in 50 frames per second to try and minimise any juddering.

Yes I realised once you started stopping so deleted my comment. Not the biggest fan of turbos but they still remind me of the Thames Valley around the West area..

[welshman]

II, Absolutely fascinating video showing the sheer scale of the electrification project.  Pity all that ironmongery spoils the wide open spaces of the GWML^▸ (Great Western Main Line).  A lot of lineside greenery has had to go too.

Splendidly synch-ed as well and informatively captioned. ***** rating.

[bobm]

Not sure which I marvel at most - the changes that have been made along the route or the work which went into producing the video!

[IndustryInsider]

Thanks a lot chaps.  I must admit I thought there were times when I'd never get to use the 2010 footage, but now that it's finished it really is good to look back on what used to be there and the amount of work involved just preparing the line for electrification, let alone the electrification itself. 

I will hopefully add Paddington to Reading in a year or so when all works there are complete, then (fingers crossed) Didcot to Oxford in a few years time!

Oh, and it really is known as 'Silly Bridge'!

[Bmblbzzz]

Thanks for the video, II! Only distantly related to electrification, but doesn't Didcot look different with those three towers gone.

[IndustryInsider]

Thanks for the video, II! Only distantly related to electrification, but doesn't Didcot look different with those three towers gone.

Much of the remainder is coming down in the next few weeks I believe?

[ray951]

Thanks for the video, II! Only distantly related to electrification, but doesn't Didcot look different with those three towers gone.

Much of the remainder is coming down in the next few weeks I believe?

That is correct, the last 3 cooling towers are being demolished on Sunday 18th August between 6am and 8am. The tall chimney is coming down in the autumn.

[Bmblbzzz]

I'll kind of miss them.

[Timmer]

I'll kind of miss them.

Let’s hope the rest of the country doesn’t following last Friday’s power outage. Hopefully that wasn’t a sign of things to come.

[ellendune]

I'll kind of miss them.

Let’s hope the rest of the country doesn’t following last Friday’s power outage. Hopefully that wasn’t a sign of things to come.

They are not much use without the rest of the (coal fired) power station

[grahame]

I'll kind of miss them.

Let’s hope the rest of the country doesn’t following last Friday’s power outage. Hopefully that wasn’t a sign of things to come.

They are not much use without the rest of the (coal fired) power station

When I used to work near Didcot I (once) went into their Tourist Information Centre ... and their most sold postcard was the one showing the cooling towers.  Just think how their demolition will impact tourism ... perhaps they should have been listed?

[didcotdean]

In case anyone is interested, the to be cleared site has planning permission for a mixed development - the far side being warehouse / distribution, the middle shops, hotel & associated restaurant, and 400 houses. A new main road will run through the centre, intended to at some time be connected with the Science Bridge flying over the railway. Mind you with the site having been an ordnance depot before a power station I do wonder if there is anything lurking underground unknown.

Nearly all of the site isn't actually in Didcot, but in Sutton Courtenay parish, who were the ones most strongly opposed. English Heritage declined to list it on the grounds that there were better examples elsewhere, so others might be lumbered with a redundant cooling tower for evermore in the future I suppose.

[Bmblbzzz]

Redundant, yes, but no more so than a medieval castle. Their graceful shape is, in my opinion, worth preserving somewhere, though looks best from a distance. The towers at Didcot did function as a place marker both on the railway and more dramatically when seen from high on the Berkshire Downs. But perhaps we're wandering into another thread.

[Thatcham Crossing]

When I used to work near Didcot I (once) went into their Tourist Information Centre ... and their most sold postcard was the one showing the cooling towers.

They were also a great aid to visual navigation when I used to fly in the local area. Could be seen from 30-40 miles away in all directions when visibility was good.

[broadgage]

I'll kind of miss them.

Let’s hope the rest of the country doesn’t following last Friday’s power outage. Hopefully that wasn’t a sign of things to come.

I fear that last Fridays outage may well be a sign of things to come. Not very frequent but more often than in past. It is over ten years since the last similar failure. But I bet that the NEXT similar failure will be in a lot less than ten years.

The growth in wind and solar power is most welcome from an environmental point of view, but is a backward step as regards grid stability and reliability.
For this and other reasons I have long felt that all new electric trains should have a battery or diesel engine for failures.
Whilst I don't think much of IETs^▸ (Intercity Express Train - replacement for HSTs (manufactured by Hitachi in Kobe, Japan)), a great merit of the electric versions is the single diesel engine.